1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to gated electronic devices and, more specifically, to a gated electronic device that includes a nanoscale piezoelectric gating mechanism.
2. Description of the Related Art
One-dimensional (1D) nano-materials have profound applications in biological and chemical sensing, mechanical force and mass sensing, nano-electromechanics, optoelectronics, and electronics and photonics. Nanodevices made using individual semiconductor nanowires/nanotubes/nanobelts are often laterally bonded on a flat substrate following the configuration of a field effect transistor (FET), in which the substrate serves as a gate electrode; the current transported from the drain to source along the nanowire is controlled or tuned by the applied gate voltage or the chemical/biochemical species adsorbed on the surface of the nanowires. It is known that zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures exhibit both piezoelectric properties while under strain and semiconducting properties.
Most of the current nanodevices using 1D nanomaterials are usually bonded at both two ends, so that the two ends may not have the freedom to move. This type of configuration may not be advantageous for fabricating devices that simulate the action of hairy beams (such as the hairy sensing mechanism inside an ear), possibly preventing them from measuring nanoscale air or liquid flow.
Therefore, there is a need for a piezoelectric FET made using a free-standing ZnO wire for sensing transverse force/vibration.